"Wait a minute. You'll soon get another slant. Now, Lizzie--start from
the very beginning."
Lizzie spoke up eagerly. "Yes, miss. Cook and me was havin' our supper
in the kitchen, miss--"
"Where was Arthur?--He's our chauffeur-gardener," explained Dorothy to
Bill.
"It's Arthur's night off, miss. He went to the movies--said he'd get a
bite at the lunch wagon in the village, though why a man should want to
eat hot dogs and such trash with honest-to-goodness vittles waiting for
him at home is more than--"
"Never mind that now, Lizzie.--You and cook were eating supper--?"
"Yes, miss. We was just finishin' when we heard a car pass the house on
its way out to the garage. I thought it might be Arthur, back in the
Ford for some supper. Cook said--"
"Oh, Lizzie, please! What happened then?"
"Why, a man came to the back door and asked for the key to the garage.
Said as how he had orders to fix the Packard."
"What time was that?"
"About five minutes after we heard the car drive out here, miss."
"No--I mean the time of day."
"I couldn't rightly say, Miss Dorothy. The kitchen clock is down to
Whipple's being mended. But it was just after you'd gone over to Mr.
Bolton's for dinner."
"What did the man look like, Lizzie?"
"Like any young man, miss."
"But was he tall or short?"
"Kind of medium-like--"
"Dark hair or light?"
"I can't seem to remember--he had a chauffeur's cap on and was in his
shirt sleeves, that I do know."
"Did you notice if he limped?"
"No, he didn't, miss--but the other fellow did--him with the big boot."
"Bull's eye!" cried Bill. "You're sure some detective, Dorothy!"
"Keep still?" ordered that young lady. And then to the housemaid: "We'll
take up the man with the big boot in a minute, Lizzie. Now then, you
gave the other one the garage key, I s'pose?"
Lizzie snorted. "That I didn't, miss. I took the key off the hook and
walked out to the garage with him. Mr. Dixon wouldn't be thankin' me to
let strange men fool round in the garage by theirselves!"
"Then how in thunder did they cop the license plates without your seeing
them?" exploded Bill.
"Do shut up and let me talk!" Dorothy stamped her foot impatiently.
"Now, Lizzie, what happened next?"
"Well, miss, I unlocked the doors and he started tinkerin' with the
engine of the Packard there. Then all of a sudden he went out to the
other car and spoke to somebody inside."
"What car was that?"
"The one he'd drove up in. It was parked out on the drive where the
young gentleman has his'n now."
"Another Packard, was it?"
"I couldn't say, miss. I didn't pay much attention to it, except that it
was a closed car--and there was a man and a woman in back."